Tuesday, February 14, 2012

THE MISTS OF PAPOOSE POND-CHAPTER TEN

It might be Valentine's Day, but it's also Terror Tuesday! See what's happening at the pond; if you dare! The Mists Of Papoose Pond are coming your way!

Chapter Ten

We do as he says, igniting the slash from many different points. The mostly pine barricade is dry, and it doesn't take long before a huge inferno covers the area. My main concern at this point is escaping the horde after us, and even though I'm worried the fire could spread into the surrounding forest, that's a chance we have to take.

Louise and her father lead the way back to the lodge while I stay in the rear to become an extra set of eyes to watch for sneak attacks from the Zombies. Maybe there are other groups scattered around besides the one we just escaped. If no one is watching for them, we could be mowed down.

No more incidences occur and we get back to the lodge safely. We rush inside and secure everything as usual, but even more so. Shit, just the smallest piece of one of these things can morph into something capable of killing one or more of us. Will the pieces grow bigger as they feed from us? Will they become as large as what they were before they were separated from the whole?

More questions; no answers.

"What the hell happened in here?!" Louise's dad asks, looking at the fireplace, ash all over the floor and even on some of the walls: even their blood could become part of the zombie invasion.

"We burned the bastards," I say. "That's the only thing that stops them."

"How the fuck did they get in here?!"

"Only pieces of them did, Dad," Louise says. "Slice a piece off, and they still attack you. Whatever is cut from them becomes a monster of its own."

"Shit! I didn't know that. This changes things; big time!"

Her dad sits down, trying to make sense of the whole fucking thing. Easier said than done. Louise said her father had a plan, but from the look on his face, that plan is down the shitter.

"What do we do now, Tom?" George asks him. "What if they come back again?"

"Maybe we should ask the guy who came up with the fire idea. He knows more than I do"

"I don't have all the answers, sir," I say. "The fire idea was the only option we had at the time, and fortunately for us, it worked."

Tom looks at me and then at Louise. "Who is this guy, Louise?"

"This is Ed, Dad. He saved us from the leeches and now the Zombies."

"The leeches?! Were they down here?"

Louise nods, knowing her dad is trying to piece eveything together, needing to get all his facts straight before he formulates a battle plan. "This is all happening faster than I had planned on. Much too fast!" he shouts.

The confab stops as the sounds of the crazed creatures arrive on the porch again. George starts a fire up in the fireplace just in case someone or thing decides it's the grand entry. Most everyone else's eyes are glued to the door, waiting for parts of the beasts to slip through the cracks again, but just as it sounds like that is very well happening, the hounds howl, splitting the air with their crescendo of horror.

"They're going to leave!" Louise shouts.

"Not for long," Tom says. "If they're traipsing around during the daylight hours, all of this becomes a totally new game. Either their Master wants to give them more recruits, or He's giving them a new battle plan."

"Or both," I say.

"Or both."

Tom looks through the peep hole. "They're gone. I can't let them out of my sight. I have to follow them."

He undoes the dead bolts and runs outside. I grab some aerosol cans, stuff them in my pockets and take off behind him.

"Get back here!" Louise shouts. "It's not safe!"

Tom waves her off, and I merely blow her a kiss. he stares at me but doesn't say anything. He's not stupid: he can see what exists between us.

The fucking Zombies are faster than I thought they would be and have a lead on us, but we move fast and have them within sight before too much time elapses. We're at the point when we wonder what to do next when a viscous like aperture forms before them, and they wander through.

But the hounds don't! They stare at us, their red eyes fixed on our uncertain frames and get ready to pounce on us, seemingly every hair on them pointed straight up, and their fangs bared, They want to bring us through the opening!

It's almost a done deal for them, but THEY appear!: the creatures from my first night up here, the ones taking the place of the ballerinas. Their brownish-yellow teeth once more show between their miniscule lips. The beings' scaley legs and gigantic webbed hands tipped with sharpened, elongated nails approach the big dogs, and as much as they want to drag us to whatever lies within this rift, these creatures scare them and they back away. Obviously, this was not part of the plan, They give one last howl and jump in behind the Zombies.

The air that is not really what it appears to be closes up and all evidence of what just happened is gone. The creatures turn and leave, heading towards the opposite end of the pond. Things are starting to clear up in my mind.

I need a fucking smoke!

My pack of Camels is pretty disheveled from the day's events, but I straighten one out, offer it to Tom, and do the same for me. "I'm trying to quit," he says, "but that's the least of my problems for now."

After lighting us both up, I take a long pull on mine. "If that ain't the truth."

We walk awhile without saying anything, but I sense that Tom will break the silence soon.

"Okay, Ed, you seem to have a level head on your shoulders and some guts to match. I don't know how much Louise has explained to you, not that it all matters since the whole fucking mess has changed, but this is what I know: Satan is using the Zombies as an army of his; there are billions of them. What you just saw with the opening in the air, a rift if you will, is the opening to Hell."

"But . . ."

"No buts, Ed. Hell isn't someplace deep within the bowels of the Earth: it exists in a parallel universe bordering ours. So does heaven. People who believe otherwise are lacking in common sense."

"Shit! Those damn dogs are Hell Hounds?"

"You got it."

"And the big scaly guys?"

"Treat them real good, Ed. They're on our side. They've been on the planet longer than humans have."

My thoughts drift back to my grandfather sensing their presense, knowing they were there but not knowing what they were. Yes, I knew too, but they never alarmed me.

"And the ones without the eyes that glow a weird greenish color?"

"They're on our side too; if we allow them to be, that is. They're fence sitters, ready to join whichever side will do them the most good."

"Doesn't look real promising, Tom. You say we can trust the amphibian people, and I'll take your word for that, but these others are too flighty and self-centered for my taste. They could turn on us in a second."

"Yes, they could. That's why it's up to us to keep ahead of the Zombies. However, I had no idea the bastards were such cunning foe."

"It's the power of Satan: their Bokor, their Necromancer, that added all these delightful twists and turns to the table, Tom."

He stubs the cigarette out on the sole of his boot. "Yes, I guess you're right. He is the one who raised them up."

I put my smoke out too, and we walk the rest of the distance back to the lodge with no more words spoken. We both need to think. Damn it all to hell! Of all places for the End Days to start, it's here: Papoose Pond, Maine!

Fuck this shit!

* * * *

Louise greets us at the door of the lodge, obviously concerned about us, hoping we were going to be back sooner, but happy we're still in one piece. She hesitates for a second, not sure who she should hug first, the indecision on her face quite obvious.

"You know you want to put your arms around Ed, Louise," Tom says. "Do it! You're certainly old enough to have a man. In fact, you're long overdue. Your carear has always come first. Loosen up for God's sake!"

She just about leaps into my arms, kissing and hugging me, tears falling down. "I thought I lost you, Ed!. Damn! I just find you and I thought you were taken from me already! Please, you have to be more careful and not so full of bravado."

We hug and kiss for a while before I release her to welcome her father back. "We are in a war, Louise," I say. "You realize that. We can't roll over and accept what the Devil wants; we have to fight Him tooth and nail. If He wins, we all lose."

The others, gathered around the door, stare at us, and having heard our words, are pulled more into what's happening. Reality is smacking some of them in the face now. It's tme for them to stop becoming fucking sheep! We need warriors!: people willing to do battle.

And yet . . .and yet, something is not right. No, the hairs on my upper back and neck are bristling with anticipation. The feeling is dark, shoving strong tendrils of what is to come down my throat, making me gag, my breath becoming more labored by the moment.

The others look at me, wondering what is wrong. And then it comes; too soon, but yes, the howling of the hounds echoes through the air, attacking our very souls!

But this time, it is not merely two hounds. No, this time they are legion. They lead the Zombies back to us, waiting for their opportunity to join in on the fun, to become a part of Satan's game.

Louise, Tom, and I rush to get back inside, another damned twist thrown in our faces. Our enemies are attacking fast, and we need to escape their grasp.